Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Building And Zoning Budget topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Building and zoning budget forwarded with request for staff engineer and fee changes
Summary
Maury County Building and Zoning director Robert asked commissioners to approve a staff engineer position to reduce consultant costs and support more rigorous reviews; commissioners forwarded the budget.
Robert, director of Maury County Building and Zoning, asked the commission to forward his department's budget, which includes funding for a staff engineer position and additional planning and mapping resources. Robert said the county currently relies on outside engineering consultants and that a staff engineer could offset some consultant costs while providing in-house review capacity.
Robert told commissioners he recently received a multiyear proposal from consultants charging a flat monthly rate that equates to roughly $124,000–$134,000 a year for civil engineering review; he said consultants previously charged about $84,000 annually for a single engineer. "We contracted our last price with him about $84,000 a year," Robert said, later describing a current flat-rate consultant proposal near $11,020 per month.
Robert requested the new staff-engineer slot at a grade 14; commissioners discussed market pay and retention. Commissioners noted salary ranges and pay-grade constraints: Doug (finance staff) said the maximum pay for the grade used in the budget is $102,510, and commissioners discussed whether the county could attract and retain a professional engineer at the budgeted range. Robert said the position could be the start of a larger development services structure combining planning, engineering and building permits.
Robert also discussed fee changes as part of efforts to approach self-sufficiency for the department. He said a proposed flat engineering review fee, potentially $500 for site plans, would help offset costs and move the department toward self-sustainability; he said recent fee changes enacted April 15 had helped revenue. "Even with a $500 engineering review fee for all site plans... we would probably be pretty close," Robert said.
Commissioners asked whether the new engineer would be a licensed professional (PE) and whether software and subscriptions (ArcGIS) were budgeted for the newly hired planner. Robert said he has budgeted for a one-time purchase and is evaluating subscriptions. The commission voted to forward the building and zoning budget, with a motion to continue discussions about pay and department structure; the motion carried on a voice vote without a roll-call tally.
The item will proceed into the next stage of the county's budget process and could prompt a separate review if commissioners decide to create a development services department.
